Google is apologizing for its unfortunate role in the N-word incident that rocked the BAFTA Awards on Sunday.
The company sent out a push alert notification to an article from The Hollywood Reporter about the debacle that read, “See more about N-----s,” according to screenshots of the alert circulated on X.
The tech company told Deadline in a statement, “We’re very sorry for this mistake. We’ve removed the offensive notification and are working to prevent this from happening again.”
The site originally reported that the push alert containing the slur was “AI-generated,” but has since added a clarification to its story, stating, “Google has since made clear that, although the inclusion of the N-word was a tech error, it was not AI-generated.” The company explained that its system “recognised a euphemism for an offensive term on several web pages, and accidentally applied the offensive term to the notification text.”
Google added, “This system error did not involve AI. Our safety filters did not properly trigger, which is what caused this.”
The error is part of the fallout after John Davidson, a BAFTAs audience member who has Tourette’s, shouted the N-word while exhibiting verbal tics during the ceremony at Sinners stars Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo on stage. The actors were presenting the award for best visual effects during the outburst, which prompted a brief pause before they continued with their remarks.
The BBC broadcast the moment without censoring out the slur on Sunday despite the show’s two-hour tape delay, and then uploaded it as is to BBC iPlayer. The footage remained until it was removed following outcry on Monday.
Davidson shouted various obscenities as a symptom of his condition on Sunday, including “shut the f--- up” and “f--- you,” during various presentations. He issued a statement saying he was “deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning,” following public outcry.
Most public criticism has been reserved for the BAFTAs, which critics say did not properly warn attendees that they might hear vulgar language during the event, and for the BBC, which was reportedly asked by Warner Bros. executives to remove the slur from the broadcast in time to prevent it from airing.
The BBC issued two statements on Monday, the first of which did not address Lindo or Jordan directly. “Some viewers may have heard strong and offensive language during the BAFTA Film Awards 2026,” the network wrote. “This arose from involuntary verbal tics associated with Tourette syndrome and was not intentional. We apologise for any offense caused by the language heard.”
As backlash increased, the company issued a second statement: “Early in the ceremony, a loud tic in the form of a profoundly offensive term was heard by many people in the room. Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage at the time, and we apologise unreservedly to them, and to all those impacted.”
They concluded, “We would like to thank Michael and Delroy for their incredible dignity and professionalism.”
